Economics of Urban Beekeeping

We certainly aren't keeping bees to supplement our family income, but this article is an interesting take on the basic economics of beekeeping. Is it an endeavor that can pay off? Sure, if the bees survive the winter and harvested honey is sold for $15-$20 a pound like hipster Brooklyn honey.

Here's the full article.

Wheat Bread

I think I found a wheat bread recipe I like. I have white loaves down, but the wheat bread I've made has been too dense or the flavor has been off. Yesterday, I tried the recipe from Baking Illustrated which is by the editors of Cook's Illustrated. Cook's Illustrated recipes are sometimes pretty complicated, and the prose is kind of preachy, but you have to hand it to them -- the recipes work. This bread is a combination of white flour, wheat flour and a little bit of rye flour sweetened with our own honey.

Half a loaf is cut up for Thanksgiving stuffing. Yum.

November Bees

It's five days before Thanksgiving, but the weather has been great for the last few days. It was over 60 degrees, sunny and calm -- great flying weather for the bees. Karl removed the varroa mite poison from the hive this afternoon. Everything looked fine, and he actually saw bees with tons of pollen. I wonder what they could be collecting these days.